The Shire of Cooloola was a

local government area A local government area (LGA) is an administrative division of a country that a local government is responsible for. The size of an LGA varies by country but it is generally a subdivision of a State (administrative division), state, province, divi ...

located about north of

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...

– the state capital of

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

, Australia. The shire covered an area of , and was the product of a merger in 1993 between the

City of Gympie A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

and the

Shire of Widgee The Shire of Widgee is a former local government area in the Wide Bay–Burnett area of Queensland, Australia. It was located in the rural areas around the town of Gympie but did not include the town itself, which was always in a separate local g ...

, which had both existed since 1879–1880. It merged with several other LGAs to form the

Gympie Region The Gympie Region is a local government area in the Wide Bay–Burnett region of Queensland, Australia, about north of Brisbane, the state capital. It is between the Sunshine Coast and Hervey Bay and centred on the town of Gympie. It was create ...

on 15 March 2008.

History

The Cooloola area was originally settled for grazing purposes. The discovery of gold in 1867 lead to a

gold rush A gold rush or gold fever is a discovery of gold—sometimes accompanied by other precious metals and rare-earth minerals—that brings an onrush of miners seeking their fortune. Major gold rushes took place in the 19th century in Australia, New Z ...

and the development of the Mary River valley for closer agricultural pursuits. The Widgee Division was incorporated on 11 November 1879 under the ''Divisional Boards Act 1879''. On 3 July 1886, its western part separately incorporated as the

Kilkivan Division Kilkivan is a town and locality in the Gympie Region of Queensland, Australia. At the , Kilkivan had a population of 713. Geography The town is situated on the Wide Bay Highway, north of the state capital, Brisbane and west of Gympie. One M ...

. With the passage of the ''Local Authorities Act 1902'', Widgee Division became the

on 31 March 1903, and on 21 November 1940 moved into new premises, the former Bank of New South Wales building at 242 Mary Street, Gympie. The Municipal Borough of Gympie was incorporated on 25 June 1880, having previously been the Gympie Division. It held, its first elections on 25 August 1880. A town hall was built in 1890. It became the

Town of Gympie A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an ori ...

under the new Act on 31 March 1903, and on 7 January 1905 was proclaimed the

by the

Governor of Queensland The governor of Queensland is the representative in the state of Queensland of the monarch of Australia. In an analogous way to the governor-general of Australia at the national level, the governor Governors of the Australian states, performs c ...

. On 19 March 1992, the

Electoral and Administrative Review Commission The Electoral and Administrative Review Commission (1989–1993) was an agency of the Government of Queensland, Australia to investigate the electoral system and public administration of the state and local government authorities of Queensland. ...

, created two years earlier, produced its report ''External Boundaries of Local Authorities'', and recommended that the

and the

should be amalgamated. The recommendation was implemented through the ''Local Government (Shire of Cooloola) Regulation 1993'' creating the new Shire of Cooloola on 2 November 1993. The first elections were held on 27 November 1993 and Adrian McClintock, the former Widgee chairman, was elected for a four-year term. The former Widgee Shire Council Chambers at 242 Mary Street, Gympie, were used as the Cooloola Shire Council Chambers. On 15 March 2008, under the ''Local Government (Reform Implementation) Act 2007'' passed by the

Parliament of Queensland The Parliament of Queensland is the legislature of Queensland, Australia. As provided under the Constitution of Queensland, the Parliament consists of the Monarch of Australia and the Legislative Assembly. It has been the only unicameral s ...

on 10 August 2007, Cooloola merged with the

Shire of Kilkivan The Shire of Kilkivan was a local government area about north-northwest of Brisbane, the state capital of Queensland, Australia. The shire covered an area of , and existed from 1886 until its merger with several other local government areas to ...

and Division 3 of the Shire of Tiaro (

Theebine Theebine is a small town and locality split between the Gympie Region and the Fraser Coast Region, both in Queensland, Australia. Geography The town is located north of the Queensland's capital city, Brisbane. Most of the locality and the t ...

Gunalda Gunalda is a rural town in the Gympie Region and a locality split between Gympie Region and Fraser Coast Region in Queensland, Australia. In the , the locality of Gunalda had a population of 392 people. Geography The town is from the state c ...

areas) to form the

. The former Cooloola Shire Council Chambers are used as the Gympie Regional Council Chambers.

Wards

On its creation, Cooloola was subdivided into four numbered divisions, containing 2, 4, 3 and 3 councillors respectively, plus an elected mayor. Before the 2000 local government elections, Division 2 was reduced to 3 councillors and a new one-councillor Division 5 was created.

Towns and localities

The Shire of Cooloola included the following settlements: Gympie area: *

Gympie Gympie ( ) is a city and a Suburbs and localities (Australia), locality in the Gympie Region, Queensland, Australia. In the Wide Bay-Burnett District, Gympie is about north of the state capital, Brisbane. The city lies on the Mary River (Queen ...

* Araluen * Chatsworth *

Glanmire Glanmire () is a suburban town from Cork city centre, in the civil parish of Rathcooney, County Cork, Ireland. Glanmire is within the administrative area of Cork City Council and the Dáil constituency of Cork North-Central. The greater Gl ...

* Jones Hill * Kybong * Monkland *

Southside Southside or South Side may refer to: Places Australia * Southside, Queensland, a semi-rural locality in the Gympie Region Canada * South Side, Newfoundland and Labrador, a community in the St. George's Bay area on the southwest coast of New ...

* Tamaree * The Dawn * Two Mile *

Veteran A veteran () is a person who has significant experience (and is usually adept and esteemed) and expertise in a particular occupation or field. A military veteran is a person who is no longer serving in a military. A military veteran that has ...

* Victory Heights Widgee area: *

Amamoor Amamoor is a rural town and locality in the Gympie Region, Queensland, Australia. In the the locality of Amamoor had a population of 636 people. Geography Amamoor is south of Gympie. The Bruce Highway passes to the east of the town and the A ...

* Brooloo * Carters Ridge * Cooloola * Cooloola Cove * Dagun *

Glastonbury Glastonbury (, ) is a town and civil parish in Somerset, England, situated at a dry point on the low-lying Somerset Levels, south of Bristol. The town, which is in the Mendip district, had a population of 8,932 in the 2011 census. Glastonbury ...

* Goomboorian * Imbil *

Kandanga Kandanga is a town and a locality in the Gympie Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , the locality of Kandanga had a population of 665 people. Geography The town is located on the Mary Valley Road ( State Route 51) north of the state capit ...

Kia Ora Kia ora (, approximated in English as or ) is a Māori-language greeting which has entered New Zealand English. It translates literally as "have life" or "be healthy", wishing the essence of life upon someone, from one speaker to the other ...

Melawondi Melawondi is a rural locality in the Gympie Region, Queensland, Australia. It is located south of Gympie. In the Melawondi had a population of 30 people. Geography Melawondi railway station is an abandoned railway station on the Mary Valley ...

* Mothar Mountain * Moy Pocket * Pie Creek *

Rainbow Beach Rainbow Beach is a coastal rural town and locality in the Gympie Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , Rainbow Beach had a population of 1,249 people. It is a popular tourist destination, both in its own right and as a gateway to Fraser Islan ...

* The Palms *

Tin Can Bay Tin Can Bay is a coastal town and locality in the Wide Bay–Burnett region in Queensland, Australia. The locality is split between the Fraser Coast Region (the northern part of the locality) and the Gympie Region (southern part of the locality) ...

¹ * Traveston * Wolvi ¹ - split with

Fraser Coast Region The Fraser Coast Region is a local government area in the Wide Bay–Burnett region of Queensland, Australia, about north of Brisbane, the state capital. It is centred on the twin cities of Hervey Bay and Maryborough and also contains Fraser I ...

Population

* Numbers in italics relate to non-existing entities.

Mayors and Chairmen

Cooloola Shire Chairmen

* Mick Venardos OAM (1997–2008) * Adrian McClintock (1993–1997)

Gympie City Mayors

* Joan Dodt (1988–1993) * Mick Venardos (1976–1988) * James Kidd (1970–1976) * Ronald Witham (1941–1970) * Luke Thomas (1937–1941) * Dr Luther Morris (1931–1937) * Alexander Glasgow (1930–1931) * Luke Thomas (1927–1930) * George Thomas (1924–1927) * Luke Thomas (1920–1924) * David Elder Reid (1903-1904)

Widgee Shire Chairmen

* Adrian McClintock (1979–1993) * Kevin De Vere (1976–1979), uncle of Australian Prime Minister

Kevin Rudd Kevin Michael Rudd (born 21 September 1957) is an Australian former politician and diplomat who served as the 26th prime minister of Australia from 2007 to 2010 and again from June 2013 to September 2013, holding office as the leader of the ...

* Michael MacDonnell (1973–1976) * William Buchanan (1969–1973) * William Hubbard Kidd (1924–1969) * Joseph Tatnell (1921–1924)

References

External links

University of Queensland: Queensland Places: Cooloola Shire
* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Cooloola Former local government areas of Queensland 2008 disestablishments in Australia Populated places disestablished in 2008 1993 establishments in Australia